2 Player Co-Op Podcast

Mario & Luigi Brothership was the last major release of the year that the guys were excited to get their hands on, and they did just that about two weeks ago. Kevin has put nearly 35 hours into the game, while Sean has played a great deal less. They both give their thoughts on their time with it so far, and dive into how it compares to some of the other Mario RPG games that they have played. Also, for the first time in a long time, there was some actual gaming news to discuss! Sony may be looking to acquire FromSoftware, Phil Spencer says no games are off limits in terms of migrating over to PlayStation, and Death Stranding got a surprise release on Xbox 5 years to the day from when it launched on PS4!

The seemingly inevitable has finally happened, as Sony made it official that Concord would not be returning in any form, while also announcing that they have shut down Firewalk Studios barely a year-and-a-half after acquiring them. Neon Koi, formerly known as Savage Game Studios, was also shut down despite Sony stating that Mobile gaming remains a focus for their business. On top of all that, word broke late last week that Brian Horton, Creative Director for Insomniac's Wolverine, had left Insomniac to take over as Creative Director for Perfect Dark at The Initiative. To put it mildly, there seems to be trouble in paradise over at PlayStation, and the guys give their thoughts on all of the moves. Other topics include Kevin's shoulder surgery (!!!), Vampire Survivors, Castlevania The Dominus Collection, Bloodstained Ritual of the Night, College Football 25's continued sales dominance, and lots more!

The guys are back after a few weeks away! They cover everything that has been going on the last few weeks, including 343 Industries rebranding to Halo Studios, Kevin's obsession with the Castlevania Dominus Collection, Balatro, Vampire Survivors, and so much more!

The Plucky Squire is a game that the guys have had their eyes on ever since it was announced. The concept of jumping back and forth between a children's book and the real world always sound fantastic, but how does it fare once you get your hands on it? The guys go through their full thoughts on the game and how it compares to their expectations. In other news, Sony's long-rumored State of Play finally arrived and finally delivered by showcasing a lot of titles that are, at the very least, intriguing before ending on an extremely high note. Other topics include why Kevin is living in The Truman Show, PlayStation finally announcing 30th anniversary consoles and accessories, getting the Platinum in Astro Bot, and the recent leak of the design for the Switch 2/Super Switch.

Sony sure has had an interesting last couple of weeks, haven't they? Sony killed Concord less than two weeks after it was released, then the critically-acclaimed Astro Bot released, and then the rollercoaster went back down again with the ill-received reveal of the PS5 Pro... The guys jump into all of it with the bulk of the time spent gushing over what a fantastic game Astro Bot is, along with Sean's thoughts on Vampire Survivors on PS5, as well as Kevin's first time playing through Castlevania: Dawn of Sorrow.

For the first time in a while, there is actually a decent bit of news for the guys to go through! Kevin is fully all aboard the Hype Train as several gaming outlets have gone hand-on with Metal Gear Solid Delta, and the reports are all very promising. They also go through some of the highlight announcements at both Gamescom Opening Night Live, as well as the recent Nintendo Indie & Partner Directs, and the not-so-shocking ridiculous sales numbers for College Football 25.

A few months ago, Xbox shocked the world with a series of studio closures including the beloved developer of Hi-Fi Rush, Tango Gameworks. This past week, news that was nearly as shocking broke that Krafton, publisher of PUBG and The Callisto Protocol, had acquired Tango as well as the rights to Hi-Fi Rush. On the other side of the spectrum, it was recently announced that Bungie was laying off over 200 people, canceling projects, and having some of their functions absorbed into PlayStation. Other topics include our first look at TLOU Season 2, Cody Rhodes' top 5 video games, more College Football 25 talk, and much more!

The news continues to trickle out of the world of video games at what seems to be the slowest rate of all time. That isn't enough to stop this podcast though! For this week's episode, the guys go through their spoiler-free thoughts on Deadpool & Wolverine, overall thoughts on the MCU moving forward, Sean beating Lies of P, Kevin's time with the Visions of Mana demo, as well as the current behemoth that is College Football 25!

Start - 00:00

Housekeeping - 00:10

Kevin is Tired - 3:15

Deadpool & Wolverine Spoiler-Free - 9:15

Doctor Doom Thoughts - 21:15

Lies of P - 33:30

Shadow of the Erdtree - 44:55

Visions of Mana Demo - 52:25

College Football 25 - 1:02:35

Wrap-Up - 1:14:40

The big question around Game Pass ever since the ABK acquisition, other than "Will Call of Duty come to Game Pass?", has been "Will Xbox raise prices on Game Pass?" We now have that answer, and it is yes. The pricing isn't the only thing changing though, as Microsoft has taken the bold step of removing Day-One first party releases from all Game Pass tiers except for the most expensive option. On top of that, PC Game Pass players do get access but for almost half the cost of what console players have to pay. Is Xbox giving the middle finger to their dedicated console base? The other big topic for the week is Kevin was finally able to jump into Shadow of the Erdtree and he shares all of his thoughts after spending 28 hours in the DLC. Just like Sean, he is absolutely in love with it, and addicted to it. Other topics include the new Captain America trailer, and sales results in the US for May.

After a couple of weeks away on vacations, the guys have returned! They kick things off by discussing what they have both been up to in their various vacations, before getting to Shadow of the Erdtree, which Kevin hasn't had a chance to play yet. Sean, no surprise, has beaten the DLC and is here to give is full thoughts on what is being called the greatest DLC ever made. Kevin took the opposite approach to gaming over his vacation, by purchasing Switch Online's Expansion Pass and diving head first into Mario & Luigi Superstar Saga. Speaking of Mario & Luigi.... they also go through all of their favorite moments from the recent (and maybe last of the Switch era) Nintendo Direct!